Category — Lists

This is a guest post from Joel Wishkovsky, founder of Nudgems.com, fun greetings from independent artists & musicians.

The best part of traveling to Central America is that no matter where you go, you are likely to be off the beaten track.  There is so much that its quite overwhelming and a lot of people ask me for advice when making plans.  Here are the 9 places I most often recommend:

1. Playa Santa Teresa (Costa Rica): This little surfing village is only accessible by unpaved roads and offers super cool hostels, great party scene and world class surfing.  It’s a popular destination for people trying to find themselves, you are sure to meet some interesting people.
2. Parque National Corcovado (Costa Rica): This national park’s severe remoteness keeps all but the truly committed from visiting.  It is therefore one of the most beautiful places in the country.  I prefer the coastal crossing into the park because it’s more adventurous and you’ll see more animals.  Take care in finding a boat guide that does not smell like alcohol and try to leave at a time that does not have you doing river crossings at high-tide.
3. Casco Viejo by public bus(Panama City, Panama):  The vast majority of Panama City is new, cosmopolitan and well groomed.  The old town, however, has had issues with squatters and has not yet been fully renovated.  Try to lose yourself in the old streets and picture Panama city before the canal and American influence.  The best way to get there and see the rest of the city is by local bus.  You can’t miss them since they are 1960s American school buses decked out with Jesus figurines and crazy colors.  They are all privately owned and so they compete for your business.  This means they will cut each other off, speed, and otherwise jockey for your attention.  Try not to leave Panama without riding a bus.
4. Isla Cebaco (Panama): One of my favorite places in all of Central America is a tiny island with few residents, no running water and is only accessible by tiny fishing boat.  It’s a great place to spend a few days camping, fishing and surfing.  It was here, surfing on a remote beach with my friend that we decided to quit our jobs and launch a startup.  To get here, go to Playa Mariato and look for a fisherman willing to take you to the island in exchange for a tank of gasoline, be patient as they don’t use watches or care about time.
5. San Blas (Panama): This chain of 350 tiny islands is one of the world’s truly amazing places.  It is remote, inhabited by fiercely independent Kuna Indians and requires significant effort to reach.  Once you reach the eastern shores of Panama, either by a 3 hour 4×4 drive from Panama City or by small charter flight, you’ll want to hire a local to ferry you to the islands.  He’ll pick you up in the mornings, take you to snorkeling spots or to uninhabited beaches and arrange a time to pick you up.  Expect them to be grossly late whenever they say they’ll come for you, if you have flights to catch plan at least a full day of leeway.
6. Isla Ometepe (Nicaragua): One of the gems of Nicaragua are twin volcanic islands in the middle of Lake Nicaragua.  They are accessible by Ferry and there are plenty of cheap taxis on the islands to take you around.  Not many Americans make it here and therefore life is cheap, fairly authentic and the beaches are natural.  If you have some time, try to take a tour of the island’s rainforests and waterfalls by horseback.
7. Granada at dusk (Nicaragua): This Spanish colonial town is what you may expect when you think about Central America and unfortunately it is packed with tourists during the day.  Luckily most of the tour groups seem to head out of town to nearby resorts or back to the capital at nightfall.  With it’s lantern lit streets, cobblestone roads and authentic feel this is a great place to wander at dusk.  It’s still Nicaragua, so be aware of your surroundings but I felt more safe here than in any other town in Central America.
8. Amapala (Honduras): This tiny island was one of the first cities in Honduras and served as its main port for many years.  It was so prominent, that it’s unique port facilities are featured on the country’s currency.  Hardly any foreigners come here, so it’s completely authentic and extremely cheap.  They have a number of resorts on the island intended for Hondurans with beautiful black sand beaches, nightly salsa dancing and extremely cheap beer.  To make the trip, head to La Flor and negotiate space on a small cargo boat headed to the island, don’t be shy about sitting on the fishing gear or snuggling with the canned goods.  If you like off the beaten track, this is you place.
9. Comayagua (Honduras): This was the original Honduran capital.  It is a beautiful town bursting with colonial authenticity, art and culture.  Like Granada, this town offers you the ability to stroll it’s streets and imagine what life was like in colonial times. The best part is that in this town things have not changed much since those days, certainly not the pace of life.  I don’t typically endorse museums in Central America, but the history museum here has some truly awesome stories to tell about the country and is hosted in a beautiful Spanish fort.

If you’ve been to Central America, share your travel stories and photos with us your friends and family and with us at Everlater.  If you are going, we hope to follow along!